Da Nang looks to become competitive city

Da Nang (VNA) – Da Nang is striving to become a sustainable urban area which has international competitiveness and holds its own identity in comparison with Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, as heard the fourth forum on Da Nang development on December 23.

The target is a part of a trilateral cooperation programme between the city, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Japan’s Yokohama city.

Under the programme, Da Nang will become a driving force for the growth of the key central economic region, and its population will expand from the current one million to 2-3 million.

To that end, JICA researchers suggested Da Nang strengthen regional connectivity, with a focus on increasing international linkages by air, road and sea.

The city should build an attractive investment environment to boost its advantageous economic sectors alongside new ones such as biological business and industry, technology and smart urban industry.

They asked the central city to expand its urban areas to meet the needs of an increasing population and growing economic activities while making more efforts to ensure the living environment, particularly for low-income groups and tourists.

Director of the municipal Department of Planning and Investment Tran Van Son said that a plan of action was approved by the three parties at the previous forums. Accordingly, Da Nang has built strategies to become a green city and develop new industries, while bettering its budget mechanisms, improving its infrastructure and human resources, and strengthening the management of land use.

The plan also focused on improving the environment, developing the port system, including Lien Chieu and Tien Sa ports, and upgrading the public transport system.

At the forum, Da Nang asked for financial and technical assistance from JICA to implement several projects within the framework of the action plan.-VNA